Mount Fuji garbage has increased for three consecutive years, with tourists throwing cans and plastic bottles everywhere
Mt. Fuji is well known as the highest peak in China and Japan and one of the important national symbols of Japan. It is also an important tourist attraction in Japan, attracting a large number of tourists all year round. However, as the number of visitors increases, the garbage problem has become a major problem for Mount Fuji. According to Japan's NHK television reported on November 13, according to Japan's Yamanashi prefecture, from July to the end of October 2017, the amount of garbage collected by the World cultural heritage Mount Fuji has increased for three consecutive years, an increase of nearly 40% compared with the same period last year. The city of Fuji Yoshida at the foot of the mountain said it is "continuing to promote measures to bring back garbage."
In order to protect the environment of Mount Fuji, the Yamanashi Prefectural government and other organizations are participating in a campaign to collect garbage, such as cans, plastic bottles and clothes, discarded by climbers and tourists, together with hiking rest points on the Yoshidaguchi Hiking Trail. From July to the end of October 2017, about 1.6 tons of waste was collected.
Although the amount of waste collected on the Yoshidaguchi hiking trail decreased during the period when Mount Fuji was listed as a World Cultural Heritage site in 2013, it continued to increase for the next three years.
"As the number of people climbing the mountain increases, the amount of garbage collected will also increase," said the Fuji Yoshida City Fuji Mountain Section. "We will cooperate with relevant organizations to promote garbage collection etiquette, including for foreign climbers."